The last hurrah.

  

While we have disappeared from ye ole blog from time to time in the past, the last two weeks of deafening silence indeed signal a sea change. After some reflection, we've decided to stop posting here, now that our time in Haiti has come to an end.  

It's definitely time, although our last few days in Port-au-Prince were too full and I didn't get to post about Ben and Bryan's impromptu gardening lesson our last morning in Haiti:

    

Or publish my mini-rant on Haitian standards of craftsmanship, as evidenced by this giant box built to hold keys:

Or gush about how much I loved this tap-tap painting:

Next time, I suppose...

This blog will hang out here for a while, although Bryan and I will both be posting on our new lives in Nashville & Philadelphia at nashadelphia.blogspot.com. Come on over!

Where in the world...

Yes, Carmen Sandiego is here in Haiti! - or was here at least long enough to have her portrait painted.

Speaking of comings and goings: today is our last full day in Haiti. We have many mixed feelings about this transition, but at the moment we're sad to be leaving. It's been two difficult but good years, and we're glad we did it.

What can you do to help victims of the earthquake?

This.

Stop Forced Evictions of Haiti's Earthquake Victims

The Institute for Justice and Democracy in Haiti writes,

After the earthquake of January 12th, over 2 million survivors left the wreckage of their homes and sought refuge in camps constructed on any open land. The Haitian Government and private landowners have evicted thousands of residents from these encampments without a viable alternative for their relocation, and in some cases with no alternative at all.

The UN and Haitian Government agreed on April 22 to an immediate 3-week moratorium on forced evictions which expired, Thursday, May 13th. Within that period reports of evictions continued. Humanitarian aid, including food, water and sanitation facilities have been cut off in targeted camps (1, 2). In other locations, residents are being harassed and abused by the police. The people most affected by the earthquake, those who have lost their families, homes and livelihoods, now live in fear that they may be violently forced to leave their present settlements without viable options established for relocation (2).

These actions are prohibited under the UN’s Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement. The UN Principles, which are based upon international humanitarian law and human rights instruments, establish the framework for protecting the rights of displaced people, including the right to basic services (food, water, shelter, education, medical services, and sanitation) and to be protected from violence (4). When these rights are not upheld, UN agencies are obligated to call on relevant parties to respect them (5). Specifically, the OCHA CCCM Cluster-designated Camp Coordinator is charged with developing an “exit/transition strategy for camp closures while ensuring that responses are in line with ... standards including relevant government, human rights, and legal obligations" (7, 8).

(for footnoted version go here - http://ijdh.org/archives/12237)

For a concise summary of this issue, click through to Alexis's blogpost.

Haiti, sometimes you shine up real nice.

We lucked out and were able to spend last weekend in a pine forest about a three-hour drive from Port-au-Prince.

It was magical - a green and misty wonderland where we were able to wander the woods for hours, soaking up the beauty of it all:


We waded in streams, collecting watercress and wild mint...


We stayed in an enchanting little cabin, one of about 20 scattered throughout the woods:

Bryan spent time lounging around with Ben and his still-busted knee:

- except when they tried to get the perfect hammock shot. I do believe this is the one photo the dignified Mr. Depp couldn't take himself:

And Kurt even showed us where to find wild strawberries and raspberries!


Rave reviews. I can't believe we didn't discover this place until our last weekend in Haiti.